Survivors submit complaint against Guatemalan state for denial of justice in genocide case

Genocide survivors submit a complaint before the Inter-American Commission on
Human Rights in Washington DC on November 6, 2013. Photo: AJR

INTERNATIONAL COMPLAINT AGAINST THE GUATEMALAN STATE FOR DENIAL OF JUSTICE IN THE GENOCIDE CASE


Washington D.C., November 6, 2013 - Today, survivors of the Guatemalan genocide, along with civil society organizations, filed a complaint in the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) against the Guatemalan state for the continued impunity  for grave human rights violations committed against the Ixil people. The complaint is based in the violation of the American Convention on Human Rights and other international human rights treaties.

In the complaint, organizations declare that the Guatemalan state has failed to fulfill its obligation to guarantee victims their right to  justice, given that after more than 30 years no one has been held responsible for the human rights violations suffered by thousands of victims.

Thus, the state is complicit, as according to the Inter-American Court on Human Rights, "impunity creates conditions for continued human rights violations and the defenselessness of victims and their families."


Events reported to the IACHR, in relation to the case for the genocide committed against the Maya Ixil ethnic group, include more than 60 massacres and attacks by Guatemalan army soldiers that resulted in the murder of approximately 1,771 victims, as well as countless victims of forced disappearance, sexual violence, torture and forced displacement.


In addition, the groups denounced the deficiencies and irregularities in the resolutions emitted by authorities in the ongoing legal process against former army generals Efraín Ríos Montt and Mauricio Rodríguez Sánchez. Examples given include: the lack of access the Defense Ministry's archives; judicial authorities' tolerance of abusive filing of injunctions, including those that are unconstitutional, and unnecessary delays in resolutions; the lack of legal basis and arbitrary nature of provisional injunction resolutions; the excessive length of the criminal process; attacks against judicial independence and the lack of protection for participants in the process.


In particular, the organizations highlighted irregularities characterized by the resolution emitted by three Constitutional Court judges on May 20, 2013, by which the process against the said former generals was annulled.


Given this situation, we the petitioners consider ourselves obligated to turn to the IACHR in the hope that the regional system for the protection of human rights can speed the processing of the complaint and assure international protection for victims in the shortest time period possible. Therefore, we ask the Commission to accept this complaint.


Resorting to the international justice system is a right enshrined in international treaties and in the Republic of Guatemala's Constitution. Thus, we turn to the Inter-American System of Human Rights Protection in order that the Guatemalan state fulfills its international obligations to uphold human rights. While impunity continues to exist, there will not be respect for human rights or full democracy in Guatemala.


For the right to a just country!
Association for Justice and Reconciliation - AJR

Center for Human Rights Legal Action - CALDH
Center for Justice and International Law - CEJIL

Guatemala's Human Rights Law Firm - BDH

Sobrevivientes entregan denuncia contra el estado de Guatemala por denegación de justicia en el caso de genocidio

 DENUNCIA INTERNACIONAL CONTRA ESTADO DE GUATEMALA
POR DENEGACION DE JUSTICIA EN EL CASO DE GENOCICIO

Washington D.C. 06 de noviembre 2013.- Víctimas sobrevivientes del genocidio en Guatemala y organizaciones sociales, interpusieron hoy, ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos (CIDH), una denuncia contra el Estado de Guatemala por la impunidad que persiste de las graves violaciones a los derechos humanos cometidas en perjuicio del pueblo ixil. La denuncia se fundamenta en la violación de la Convención Americana sobre Derechos Humanos y de otros tratados internacionales de derechos humanos.

En la denuncia, las organizaciones afirmaron que el Estado de Guatemala ha incumplido con la obligación de garantizar a las víctimas su derecho a acceder a la justicia ya que por más de 30 años no se ha juzgado a ninguno de los responsables de las violaciones sufridas por miles de víctimas.

Tal conducta compromete la responsabilidad del Estado ya que según lo ha establecido la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos “la impunidad propicia la repetición crónica de las violaciones de derechos humanos y la total indefensión de las víctimas y de sus familiares”.

Algunos de los hechos que fueron denunciados ante la CIDH, en relación con el caso de genocidio cometido en contra del grupo étnico maya Ixil, consisten en más de 60 masacres y ataques de miembros del ejército guatemalteco que dejaron como saldo aproximadamente 1771 víctimas asesinadas, así como numerosas víctimas de desaparición forzada, violencia sexual, tortura y desplazamiento forzado.

Además, en relación con el proceso que se siguió en contra de los ex generales Efraín Ríos Montt y Mauricio Rodríguez Sánchez, se denunciaron las deficiencias e irregularidades de las resoluciones emitidas por las autoridades en el proceso penal, como por ejemplo: la falta de acceso a los archivos del Ministerio de la Defensa; tolerancia de las autoridades judiciales frente al abuso de acciones de amparo y de inconstitucionalidad y dilaciones indebidas en su resolución; la falta de fundamentación y arbitrariedad de las resoluciones de amparo provisional; la duración excesiva del proceso penal; los ataques a la independencia judicial y la falta de protección a los participantes en el proceso.

En particular, se destacaron ante la CIDH las irregularidades que caracterizaron la resolución de fecha 20 de mayo de 2013 dictada por tres miembros de la Corte de Constitucionalidad mediante la cual se anuló el proceso seguido contra los citados militares.

Ante todo lo anterior, los peticionarios nos hemos visto obligados a acudir ante la Comisión Interamericana de los Derechos Humanos, con la esperanza de que el sistema regional de protección de los derechos humanos agilice el trámite de la petición y asegure la protección internacional de las víctimas en el menor plazo posible. Por lo que pedimos a la Comisión la admisibilidad de la presente denuncia.

Acudir a la justicia internacional es un derecho consagrado en los tratados internacionales y en la Constitución Política de la República de Guatemala, por lo que acudimos al Sistema Interamericano de Protección de Derechos Humanos con el fin de que el Estado cumpla con sus obligaciones internacionales en materia de derechos humanos. Mientras haya impunidad no habrá respeto a los derechos humanos en Guatemala ni democracia plena.

¡Por el derecho a un país justo!

Asociación para la Justicia y Reconciliación - AJR
Centro para la Acción Legal en Derechos Humanos – CALDH
Centro por la Justicia y el Derecho Internacional - CEJIL
Bufete Jurídico por los Derechos Humanos - BDH

"Justice for genocide: A survivor's story" DC & Tucson tour stops

On October 30, NISGUA began our tour with Association for Justice and Reconciliation president, Anselmo Roldán Aguilar. After a day of meeting with key state and congressional representatives, Anselmo gave his first presentation at the Unitarian Unitarian Church of Arlington. The event, hosted by Partners for Arlington and Guatemala, connected Anselmo with a group of dedicated individuals committed to promoting human rights and education in Guatemala as well as supporting immigrants in their local community.

In D.C., we launched our tour actions - a petition calling for NO IMPUNITY! and NO AMNESTY! for war criminals and a postcard campaign collecting messages in support of the genocide sentence. After Anselmo presented at American University, students responded with powerful submissions in support of the genocide sentence:

Justice needs to be met to the fullest extent of the law. Rios Montt was found guilty already of murder and genocide. His current “freedom” and house arrest is unlawful… the victims need closure and the Guatemalan government needs to do what is right.


All persons need justice and equal rights. The Historican Clarification Comission (CEH) declared that there was genocide in the 1980s and now is the time to remember this in the Guatemalan system. Justice is necessary for the future of Guatemala.

Yo también soy sobreviviente, pero de un crimen mucho menor. Su fuerza y su valor me inspira TANTO! Que sigan adelante! Nunca Mas! Sus crímenes son realidad, y nadie lo puede negar ni borrar. La lucha sigue!

Justicia es necesario para el futuro de Guatemala.

You can stand in solidarity with the AJR from anywhere in the world by participating in the campaign online! Take action: sign the petition to join the call for "NO AMNESTY" and share why the genocide sentence is important to you.

While at American University, former NISGUA staffer Beth Geglia sat down with Anselmo to conduct an interview about his expectations for the fall tour and what he hopes to share with US audiences. Read what Anselmo had to say in Beth's exclusive interview, “There is No Amnesty for These Crimes”: Guatemalan Massacre Survivor Anselmo Roldán Kicks Off U.S. Speaking Tour".

Anselmo finished off his D.C. visits with a potluck hosted by former NISGUA accompaniers. The gathering gave Anselmo the special opportunity to reconnect with accompaniers who once lived in his community of Cuarto Pueblo.

Anselmo and NISGUA's Guatemalan Programs Coordinator, Ellen Moore, travel across the country for their next tour engagements in Tucson, Arizona. There, a community event brought together former accompanies and immigration rights activists for a potluck and presentation with Anselmo. Participants admired the genocide sentence (pictured) and shared their own messages of support, including:

This sentence validates the painful histories that have too long been ignored. Let Guatemala set the standard for justice not impunity.

Los derechos humanos no tienen fronteras! Apoyamos a Uds. en solidaridad – gracias por su lucha para la justicia. The proof is in the sentence. Si hubo genocidio!

The next day, the AJR participated in the Tear Down the Walls national gathering, hosted by the Alliance for Global Justice, with a presentation titled "Guatemalan Genocide Case: Tearing Down the Walls of Impunity." The gathering provided the unique opportunity for cross-border relationship building during a workshop on social, ecological and economic injustices that impact indigenous communities given by the Forgotten Navajo People. Participants discussed structural violence and the imposition of harmful development projects, particularly a uranium mine on Navajo lands. They also discussed the increasing use of the penal system to control movements through the criminalization of leaders and human rights defenders, both in the US and Guatemala.

The AJR and NISGUA also participated in an assembly that focused on the war on drugs, immigration and the militarization of the border to better understand the US policies and laws that drive this deadly system.

Continue to follow the NISGUA tour! See what cities we're headed to next by visiting our website.